This invention relates to an optical recording medium and a method and apparatus for reproducing the optical recording medium. More particularly, it relates to an optical recording medium having first and second recording layers and to a method and apparatus for reproducing the optical recording medium.
As a recording medium for a variety of the information, such as audio or video information, an optical disc, as this recording medium, carrying thereon the recorded information, adapted to be reproduced using a light beam, is in widespread use. In such optical disc, it has been proposed to provide for plural recording layers in order to increase the volume of the recordable information.
Meanwhile, in the optical disc having plural recording layers, proposed so far, data in the respective recording layers are recorded so as to be sequentially reproduced from one recording layer to another. That is, in this optical disc, data recorded on one recording layer is reproduced first and subsequently the data recorded on another recording layer is reproduced to reproduce the entire data recorded on each recording layer.
Alternatively, one of plural sectors provided on one recording layer of the optical disc is reproduced first, and subsequently another one of the sectors, provided on another one of the recording layers is reproduced.
In the multi-layered optical disc, proposed so far, the recording capacity of the optical disc is increased by providing plural recording layers. However, the data recorded on the respective recording layers are reproduced without relevance to one another. So, the data recorded on the respectively, recording layers are simply reproduced as the data are recorded in the respective recording layers.